Cards go small ball in finale with Yanks

(BaseballStL) — The rubber match with the Yankees will see the Cardinals field a low-power lineup Wednesday.

Jon Jay, Daniel Descalso and Peter Bourjos will all see the field for the series finale. Peralta’s absence was an expected one, as the newly-32-year-old shortstop will will sit out his birthday. Craigs move to first was more necessity-based, as Matt Adams found himself in discomfort after Tuesday’s 6-0 win.

“We put this one on the schedule awhile ago to try to give Jhonny a day,” Matheny said on the field. “The one that wasn’t necessarily planned was Adams- a little tight in his calf. But we feel like it’s something we can get ahead of here if we’re a little cautious, but he still may be available late.”

The Cardinal manager said he wasn’t sure which leg was affected, but there wasn’t a specific event that caused the tightness. He got the news after the game and decided it was best to leave the big lefty out of the game Wednesday.

Experienced Hands

Kolten Wong flashed his fielding prowess last night, and afterward said he was feeling much more like himself. For a rookie to deal with the pressures of the majors, he heeds guidance. In addition to his Manager, Wong has had help in what is a rather young clubhouse.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily number of veterans that you have as much as quality as veterans that you have and how they lead,” Matheny said. “There’s some guys that have been in the game a long time and are really only concerned about themselves and we’ve got some guys who truly try to make an atmosphere for a Kolten Wong and any other young guy who walks through these doors- an atmosphere where they can be successful. Not one where they come up and be walking on glass all the time and always be concerned about offending people.”

“They’re brought in here for a purpose and that’s for us to win. That’s set by out veteran players. I think we’re starting to see it and we saw it last year too,” he said. “Everybody wanted to know why our young players did as well as they did. A big part of that is the atmosphere our veterans set.”